The Gutter Rat:A steampunk Novella

Chapter 1 : Grave Celebrations

Eternity Spire was back dropped by the obsidian night. White specks of life, cold light bulbs illuminated the smooth walls of the tower just enough to see basic details, a mere summary of the elegant designs and architecture at work.From the street floor one might see the spire as a never ending pillar, a monument to man's ability to create splendours of incredible beauty. Many dreamed of what was inside, only the eight members of the scarlet council ever saw the contents above the first floor. Perhaps there were great halls of smooth white marble, perfection incarnate. Perhaps there were private gardens where one could wonder for hours and admire nature without outside noise to pollute the serene environment. Or maybe there was something different entirely?

These were a handful of the thoughts racing through Alrec's mind, Images and theories of what you might see if you were to strip down the flawless walls. Walls much more grand than the rough, cobblestone wall his aching back rested against currently. The young lad bore a weathered and rough cowl that cast a shadow over his youthful features. He sat motionless at the street corner watching the passers by, thugs bearing hidden tattoos hassled street vendors, the few workshops and stores to be seen were boarded up and locked out of fear of thievery.

"Hey kid, get your arse off my doorstep before i throw it off!" the rough voice came from overhead, as Alrec looked up he looked gaze with the old tinkerer. Mr Craft was once a clockmaker, some say he even graduated from the guild of hammers, but now he was simply a toymaker yet surprisingly wealthy for someone in the slums. The old wooden shutters from the second floor slammed shut and the sound of iron locking mechanisms clicking into place were easily recognised. Alrec rose to his feet slowly, once he made sure his boots were tied he slid on a pair of leather gauntlet like gloves and started at the building he once sat against.

"time to get to work"

With one swift kick off the wall he grasped his hands onto the window ledge above and dangled there for a few seconds wile he planted his foot into the stonework. Within the next few moments he had already planned out a route, a few well placed kicks and pulls led Alrec to the roof of the Tinkerer's shop. He traced his steps carefully along the tiled roof, minding his step for loose or broken tiles, at the edge of his path he planned his next course of action... the entry. He stepped, dropping over the edge before quickly turning and grabbing the ledge, his momentum swinging him through the open window. Alrec had kept his eye on the tinkerer's shop for the past few nights and knew exactly how to get in. He landed near silently upon the wooden floorboards and rolled underneath the workbench to his right. The room was empty, a lone door was closed on the wall across from his hiding spot, a writing desk stood against the other wall and the young boy slowly crawled out from the shadows. Within a matter of seconds he had already swiped the spare parts off of the workbench and into his pockets, next came the brass pocket watch, followed by a deep blue stone hung from the iron chain of a necklace. As Alrec turned to face the window again his heart stopped. Only for a second though, the grinding of gears and moaning of the wooden door sliding open was all the warning he needed. A single vault carried the thief out of his victims home, light footsteps sprinted across the next few rooftops, it wasn't long before he dropped into a dark alley with the stone brick walls of the local chapel towering in front of him.

Alrec slithered his way up the side of the chapel, using the drainpipe as a ladder. He made the same journey every year sometimes several times a year since he was about six and so he found that his feet and hands effortlessly carried him onto the stone roof, one of the only roofs not of sheet metal in that part of the district. His feet carried him along the roof's edge, the night was cold but the wind was slow and no rain was falling allowing Alrec to safely speed, barefoot, Around the back of the chapel. As he gazed down the steep gothic stone wall he saw only a single ledge breaking the drop. Alrec knew from previous journeys that if he was to hang from the ledge he stood on, drop to the window ledge then flip off till he reached the floor he would be safely on a grass floor, but he would only have a few minutes before someone would come out to find him.

The thud as his feet hit the ground was muffled, the same landing was now a reflex allowing him to quickly hide behind a row of blank gravestones nearby. A white robbed figure ran round the corner, his weathered face scanning the graveyard as lantern light shone from behind his head.

"We know yer out there ya wee rascal! Show yerself!" the gravely voice rang out through the still, foul air. As the priest's eyes searched for the young boy he had seen drop from the window, Alrec crawled steadily back where he hoped to remain unseen. "sir, come inside quickly, the chill will get to you if this scrappy excuse for breathable air doesn't." The Figure turned and grunted before wondering back round the corner. Alrec pushed himself to his feet, dusting the dirt off the front of the greasy, patchy shirt he wore. A grunt came from a few meters ahead of Alrec, as he looked up his stare met with the emerald eyes of the guard. Leather boots, cotton brown military style trousers, a beige and well worn shirt covered his well muscled upper body and an ammunition belt hung diagonally round him. In his hand he carried a crude iron lamp but Alrec recognised what appeared to be a weapon frame on his left wrist. The metal contraptions were huge bracelet like equipment that could house different attachments, this one held what looked like a singe barrel, ornate hand cannon, a lot heavier armed than one would expect from a simple chapel security.

"oi kid, get lost" The well groomed man gestured at Alrec to leave then followed the priest indoors. The boy turned to face out into the field, between the pillars row on row he saw them. The dead lucky, wealthy or loved enough to be put to rest. He strode down the centre aisle, subconsciously destined towards the third stone pillar on the ninth row.

Today was his sixteenth name day, the calendar on display at the communication office a few blocks away alerted him to it. With no friends, no home and no coworkers to celebrate with he would spend it here with the ones he loved. "Hey mum, you missed me? I'm sixteen today, we haven't seen each other since i was nine but, but i promise ill continue to speak to you every year. i know it usually is the other way round but, i got you a present" Alrec spilled the contents of his pocket out into his hands and sat, cross legged, connecting them together using a nearby stone as a screwdriver. A couple minutes later was all he needed before he pressed it to his lips and showed it to the near bare stone. "I hope you like it" The copper trinket was placed gently on the rough dirt mound of his mothers grave, the tiny gears and iron strips were screwed and slid together to form a flower like brooch. "i know its not much but, i just want you to know i love you, you're probably sick of hearing it by now but i do". Tears fought past closed lids, dampening his young yet well worn features. "Please, don't lose with in me mum. I'll make you proud one day, as long as it takes promise ill be at the son you deserve." Alrec rose to his feet and slid down his cowl, exposing the dirty blonde hair and young face. A single scar traced itself down from his brow to his cheekbone, rendering his left eye dead. "I'll never forget you, or forgive what happened to you" the tears that followed brought back memories within the boy that he had thought forgotten except in his dreams. A stormy night, a broken door, a beast's claw and his mothers cries. The Lunation Guard office claimed that the boy was hallucinating off of the fumes of the factories, no animals could be found anywhere within the inner walls they told him. A few gang gunmen chipped together and payed for the mother to be buried, although labelled criminals by the officials out here they were the law and they seemed to care for those with a good heart supposedly. The weeks following he had been taken in by the factory, he worked and in exchange was suppled a roof and bread, he was taught to assemble weaponry for the Terra legions. Weapon frames, autopistols and fine-tuning on airship turrets was merely a handful of what he produced. Up until his fourteenth name day he was considered a prized asset, until the foreman thought his skill would one day be dangerous, Alrec was taken out back and ordered executed for "thievery", if it wasn't for the boys climbing he'd of been maggot feed long ago... now he was on the run, a gutter rat who's only job was supplying the sewer merchants. A secret group of traders who bought their stock from pickpockets and gang raids only to be sold off in other districts.

The boy flicked up his hood, the cowl drooping in front of his eyes and with a hasty turn the spectre flew down the aisle once more, covering the whole field in a matter of moments as what would appear to be a shadow. The uneven drystone wall at the far end was the border and with simple enough placement he was atop and ready to leave. It was however when he placed his foot atop the wall when he found a flaw in the craftsman's construction. The slab gave way and threw Alric's balance off long enough for him to fall into the side alleyway. His shoulder blade and spine crashing directly onto the pebbled path and his head whiplashing off the earth as he blacked out.